A team of scientists led by geneticist Dieter Egli at Columbia University has used a new gene-editing technique to alter DNA in human embryos. According to the Futurism website, the purpose of the study was not to develop new treatments, but rather to prove that the new method is more effective than the old method (CRISPR) and does not cause harm.
However, genome editing researcher Alexis Komor said that Eagly and his colleagues had violated their existing “gentleman’s agreement” by conducting research in such a controversial field, and that this could open the floodgates to similar experiments.
Proponents of the technology say it will cure diseases, while critics compare it to eugenics, allowing parents to choose desirable traits in their children. Early trials have already shown promising results: last year, a nine-month-old baby was cured of a rare genetic disease thanks to advanced gene therapy using a new gene-editing technique. At the same time, scientists acknowledge that there is still a lot of work to be done before this technology can be used for treatment, the report says. material.
Parents will soon be able to genetically “design” their children, confirms the President of the Russian Academy of Sciences Gennady Krasnikov – as genome editing technologies are developing very rapidly. Evening Moscow, in collaboration with experts, understand where the line lies between the treatment of genetic diseases and the dangerous game of being creative.